“It was good,” I confess. “Better than good. Her parents like me, at least I think they do, and Amy, her best friend, gives me hell, but she doesn’t hate me. And Hope…” My voice breaks for half a second, and I take a shaky breath. “I haven’t felt that kind of peace around someone in a long time. Maybe ever.”
Dad studies me carefully. “What happened?”
I drag my fingers through my hair. “You texted me.” Dad doesn’t flinch. “You said the toy drive was coming up, that the club needed me.”
Dad’s voice is gentle. “So, you panicked.”
“I ran,” I growl, disgust twisting my stomach. “Packed my shit and ran before she came home. No explanation, no conversation, nothing.”
Dad sighs, long and heavy. “Son…”
“I’m a coward,” I snap. “I know she deserved better. She’s… fuck she’s a damn beacon of light and warmth. I’m this.” I gesture to myself. “A jaded biker who lost his mom, a guy who disappears when things get hard.”
Dad takes a step closer. “Frost. Look at me.” I do. “You’re wrong.”
The certainty in his voice hits like a punch.
“You’re not a coward,” he says. “You’re a man grieving his mother. A man who thinks he isn’t allowed good things. You think the people who love you are better off without you because you don’t think you’re enough.” He shakes his head. “You’re afraid if you let your heart thaw, you’ll become weak.”
My chest tightens painfully.
Dad grips my shoulder. “That girl didn’t make you weak. She made you hope for something again. That scares the hell out of you, which means she matters.”
I swallow hard. My eyes burn. I blink angrily.
Dad lowers his voice. “Have you called her? Explained what’s going on?”
I shake my head. “Every time I go to text her, something comes up. How do I explain why I up and left without any warning?” A breath shudders out of me. “I don’t even know if she’d answer the phone if I called.”
“Then you show up,” he says simply. “You look her in the eye, and tell her the truth. All of it.”
I shake my head. “What if she hates me?”
“Then you take it like a man,” Dad says. “But what if she doesn’t?” His gaze softens. “What if she’s waiting for you to come home to her?”
Home… The word hits harder than it should. Hope felt like home. I didn’t realize how much until I walked away from her.
Dad squeezes my shoulder again. “Stop letting fear decide your life. If you love her,” he says and then pauses. “I see it all over your damn face, don’t even bother to deny it. Fight for her. The toy drive will be over in three days, plenty of time to pull your head out of your ass and make this right.”
I take a long, slow breath, and for the first time all week, I know exactly what I need to do.
CHAPTER 15
PAIGE
Ididn’t mean to eavesdrop. Okay,maybeI meant to a little. Frost and Dad went into Dad’s office, but they left the door slightly open, which is basically an invitation in this family. When my big, tough, emotionally detached brother’s voice cracks, I freeze in the hallway like someone nailed my boots to the floor.
I don’t move or breathe as I stand there and listen to the whole damn story spill out of his mouth. He bares his soul to our dad, and by the time he says Hope’s name, he sounds like someone punched through his ribs and squeezed his heart in their fist.
Dad mutters something I can’t hear, and a moment later his boots thud against the floor toward me. I duck behind the corner and peek inside to see Frost sitting there, looking broken. Before he spots me, I take off down the hallway back to the main room. I hurry to the couch Frost vacated when he was summoned by Dad, and sitting on the cushion is his phone.
Bingo!
Frost’s passcode is Mom’s birthday, which makes it easy to break in. The screen lights up with a text he hasn’t sent to Hope yet.
That’s the woman he was talking about.
My stomach twists as I read what’s on the display.Hope, I’m sorry. He’s blocked himself off completely, from her and everyone else. Frost’s not going to fix it on his own. He’s as stubborn as a damn cinder block.
